The Ice is Getting Thinner
by castiel-holmes
Summary: What if, after the loss of not only their teammates but their family, Jack and Ianto are driven further apart instead of closer together, leading them inevitably to the arms of another?
1. Prologue: Slow Dancing in a Burning Room

Title: The Ice is Getting Thinner

Prologue: Slow Dancing in a Burning Room

Pairings: Jack/Ianto, Jack/John, Ianto/John

Summary: What if, after the loss of not only their teammates but their family, Jack and Ianto are driven further apart instead of closer together, leading them inevitably to the arms of another.

This Part: Jack and Ianto argue about coffee and sex in the office, and then have sex out of the office.

A/N: This takes place shortly after the season finale of Doctor Who.

Dedicated to my lovely asgt, as this was inspired by a late night conversation over facebook and aim, discussing what Jack and Ianto actually say to each other when they fight. Er, sorry, this came out as a little more angsty than I intended, but I promise, it will have its moments!

"You're laundry, sir," said Ianto as he dropped a neatly folded pile on the bed in the basement. Jack noted the hint of venom in her tone. "If that's all you require, _sir_, I'll just be getting back to the Archives."

Jack touched his shoulder, playing with the collar of his jacket. "Actually…" he leaned in close, murmuring into his ear, "There is something else I require." He let his hand slide over the curve of Ianto's hip.

The younger man deftly maneuvered out of Jack's reach, climbing the first few rungs of the ladder. "Certainly not, sir, you can take care of that yourself, I'm sure," he said as he continued to climb. He could feel Jack's hard gaze following him, and sure enough, the captain followed him to the top.

"Yan," he whined, "The CCTV is off, everyone is gone, it's not like we haven't had sex here before."

"For the last time: I despise nicknames. I am not your sex toy. I am not your slave." Rather than go to the Archives or tidy as he had originally planned, he simply gathered his few belongings and disappeared into the night.

Jack truly had no idea what he'd done wrong, but he knew it had to be more than the pathetic reasons Ianto gave. In fact, he doubted he'd even done anything to truly bother his lover; the truth was more and more lately that Ianto took even Jack's playful teasing the wrong way when once he would've played along.

His clothes were torn roughly from his body, shirt and tie surely ruined in the haste. Lips pressed against his own with bruising force as he was shoved against a wall, hips grinding together.

This coupling had nothing to do with any emotion but anger. Ianto's anger, because he couldn't help but give into his needs, because he couldn't tell Jack how he really felt, because no matter how much of a distraction John was, he could never drive Jack completely from Ianto's mind.

Rain-drenched, weary, Jack stood in front of the locked door, unsure of whether he would receive an answer to his desperate call. The door opened. His dual hunter and hunted eyed him hungrily, closed the distance, pulled him into a searing kiss. And Jack cursed himself for coming here, for giving in to his craving for the familiarity of his past. John was no replacement for Ianto, and Ianto was no replacement for the Doctor.


	2. Intermission

Title: Intermission (2/9)

Rating: PG-13

Pairings: Jack/Ianto, Jack/John

This Part: Most days, Jack is the strong one. Then there are the days when Ianto takes over for him.

Disclaimer: Belongs to RTD and the BBC, not me. Song belongs to The Scissor Sisters.

A/N: There's a bit of sex to this chapter, but, since that's not allowed here, the chapter, in its entirety, is also posted on my livejournal: elegantwings./8374.html

_All the angels want to know, are you lost or treading water?_

"Ianto!" Jack bellowed, "Where the hell are my boxers?"

"Pile of laundry on the bed, Jack."

"No," he said darkly, "My lucky boxers." The very idea that Captain Jack Harkness, the enigmatic and dangerous leader of Torchwood 3 would put faith in lucky boxers was a little insane, and at the same time, it was so completely Jack.

"Wherever you left them." He entered the bedroom, holding two mugs of coffee. Nearly two years of on-and-off again sex, not to mention the drawer of clothes Jack had in Ianto's cabinet, and he still expected him to keep perfect track of all of his clothing.

Jack accepted his coffee, glaring at the Welshman. "You're up to something, Ianto Jones."

He sipped his own drink, and concentrated on looking natural. "I don't know what you're talking about Jack," he said coolly, "But you don't look particularly threatening standing stark naked in the middle of my bedroom."

The expression on Jack's face shifted slightly, allowing him to look disappointed for just a moment before falling into his usual smirk. "Not even like a predator, maybe?"

Fifteen minutes later, Ianto was hastily re-fastening his tie as Jack, still naked, finished his coffee while sprawled across the bed. "C'mon Jack," Ianto scolded, "Gwen will be at work soon and we can't expect her to handle everything by herself."

Jack stood, pulling a pair of boxers from the top of the pile of clean clothes that had been relocated to a chair. "You're right. Did you compile that list of Torchwood candidates yet?" he asked, sounding annoyed.

"A week ago, remember?" He knew Jack was avoiding the search on purpose, he knew he was being blamed for it because Jack wanted to look like the strong one, but he couldn't keep the exasperation from his voice.

"You're right, I forgot." His response surprised his lover. His eyes focused on the buttons he was fastening as he continued, quietly, "I haven't had the time."

Ianto moved his hands out of the way, took over the buttoning, gently lifted his braces into place, and slid the greatcoat over his shoulders, silently. He took hold of his hands again, bringing them up to his lips and placing a kiss over his knuckles. "We can manage a little longer on our own," he said.

And Jack agreed, even though he knew the added risk it put on Ianto and Gwen's shoulders.

xxx

One, two, three coffee cups, sitting on a tray, filled with Ianto's strongest brew for the worst days. No matter how many times he arranged them, three looked just as awkward and intrinsically wrong as four had when Owen died the first time.

Today was one of the worst days because, by Ianto's count, Gwen had run to cry in the bathroom twice when lately she'd managed to make through the day fine; because Jack had started yelling about Owen making a mess of something or other; because some silly package of adverts for family vacations had arrived for the tourist office featuring a cover of a smiling, petite Asian woman; because Gwen had unconsciously included Owen and Tosh's favorites when she bought pastries that morning.

He delivered to Gwen first, touched her shoulder gently, told her to finish up and go home. Jack had his back turned to the door, yelling at someone on the phone, so Ianto left his on his desk, quiet as a mouse, exiting to clean the Hub. Lately, it was less cleaning and more standing around with a towel waiting to see if Myfanwy was planning to make a mess of someone's (Owen's or Tosh's unused?) desk.

He dumped his coffee, feeling sick at the thought. He waved mechanically to Gwen as she left. Let Jack fuck him over his desk, making all the right noises. Pretended he didn't mind going home alone because the phone calls had Jack behind in paperwork to the next century. Slid to the floor as soon as he shut the door to his flat behind him and sobbed and sobbed and sobbed because he couldn't pretend he was strong any more.

He didn't question how he ended up in bed the next morning, or why the pillow smelled like Jack even though the captain was nowhere to be found. The torch had been passed, then, and it was Jack's turn once more to be strong.

xxx

"Lucky boxers, Ianto. Blue. Striped with lighter blue. It's not that hard. That woman is insisting on another call today, and I need all the luck I can get." He leaned forward over his desk, hands folded.

"I'm sorry sir, but I haven't seen them since you removed them quite hastily from yourself about a week ago. We were in the Hub, maybe Myfanwy's taken them." He concentrated on not looking guilty, an easy task because his dominant emotion was frustration, and not the good kind. He missed the Jack of yesterday, the Jack who was a doting boyfriend, the Jack with whom he had mind-blowing sex, the Jack who talked to him. This Jack was Macho Jack: distant, curt, and guilty.

No matter the day, if Ianto went home alone, he would break down behind the front door. And he knew every time, he'd crushed Jack's hope once more, and this is how he was punished for it.

"Ianto…" he began.

"Get over your fucking boxers, Jack." He slammed the door in his face, leaving Jack a little bewildered.

He followed him, grabbed his arm, pinned him to the wall. "What the fuck is up your ass, Ianto Jones?"

"Wouldn't you like to know," he sneered, resisting his captor.

Jack pushed against him in warning. "Don't bother trying." They glared at each other for a heated moment. "Go home, Gwen," Jack said to the woman frozen at her desk.

"Jack!" she exclaimed, suddenly given life, "What are you doing? Let him alone, it's just a pair of boxers, they'll turn up-"

He turned to stare at her, burning holes into her eyes. "Go. Home. Gwen. Williams."

"But Jack-"

"I'll be fine, Gwen," Ianto said quietly, and she believed him.

xxx


	3. Waking Up to Us

Title: The Ice is Getting Thinner (3/9)

Chapter 3: Waking Up to Us

Rating: PG-13

Pairings: Jack/Ianto, Jack/John., Ianto/John

Summary: Emotionally tense after the loss of not only their teammates but their family, Jack and Ianto's less than bliss leads them inevitably to the arms of another. Instead of bringing them closer together, the loss has driven them farther apart.

This Part: Gwen and Ianto bond at Jack's expense.

A/N: Please review, or else I have no motivation to continue. .

_I need someone to take some joy in something I do  
You need a man who is either rich or loose in a screw  
You know I love you, here's the irony  
You're going to walk away intact  
I think you never liked me anyway  
You like yourself and you like men to kiss your arse  
Expensive clothes, please stop me there  
I think I'm waking up to us  
We're a disaster_

"You know, Jack, I was thinking," Gwen began, tucking her hair behind her ear, trying to look confident, "Maybe we could hire Rhys to come help out around here? Could free up Ianto, you know? The three of us in the field more often, better than just two." Her pocket mirror laughed at her.

"Never gonna work," Ianto said as he approached her desk, pulling up a now-abandoned chair, pretending it never belonged to Tosh. "Number one, Jack will never go for the two of us "in danger" at once. Two, he isn't going to let you bring your life to work." 'Again,' he thought.

She touched his hand. "Maybe you should take your own advice," she said softly.

"I am," he said in a measured tone.

"She squeezed it gently. "If you ever need to talk about anything…"

"I know." He wandered to the coffee machine, thinking over her offer. A small part of him wanted to jump at the chance. He thought about it briefly; take her out for a coffee, bitch about Jack and John and how fucked up the whole thing was and how he knew Jack was cheating on him, too, even though neither of them would ever admit it. A little part of him even wanted to brag about the fantastic sex he was having twice a day, if not more. He wanted someone to talk to other than Jack, who grew more distant every day.

"Actually, Gwen," he said after a few moments spent staring at coffee grains, "I could use some fresh air. Shall we go for Starbucks?"

Smiling, she grabbed her purse. "My treat?" she offered brightly.

Flashing a credit card, he matched her grin. "Jack's."

The more they chatted, the more he wondered why exactly they had stopped doing things like this in the first place. And suddenly, as that thought crossed his mind, he realized there was no good reason except for the brick wall that had arisen when they had lost their teammates.

The good times didn't last. In a perfect mirror of her earlier action, Gwen's hand found her way to the top of his as she asked, eyes narrowing with care, leaning forward, "Ianto, how are you and Jack?"

He looked away, played with his answer in his mind, unable to think of the best way to phrase it. "He…He's cheating on me."

She didn't give him time to elaborate as she tensed in anger as she exclaimed, "The bastard! I never thought he would, how could he after everything, as soon as I see him, I'll…"

"Gwen, calm down, it's alright," he looked at her this time, offering reassurance with his eyes that he didn't even feel. "I'm cheating on him, too."

She paused, obviously confused. "What? But, why? And, does he know? How do you know?"

"I assume he knows just as well as I do. It was almost as if," his mind traveled to the countless explanations he'd puzzled out in his diary, "As if, one day we woke up, and we both knew it wasn't exclusive anymore. There's been too much hurt, too much loss. I can't expect him to lo-" embarrassed, he realized he'd almost said "love", "To, be with me when my life is just as fragile as…as Tosh and Owen's were."

She avoided the mention of their lost. "So, you're "cheating" on each other as an excuse not to fall in love, not to get too close, is it? Why don't you just split up, then?" Her tone was accusatory, sad. For being the heart of what was left of their team, her friends' situation did not sit well with her at all.

"Because I, because I do love him, Gwen, alright?" he said in a very small, very lost voice. "And because he likes getting sex on call, just like his coffee." His voice by the end carried a bitter note.

"Oh, Ianto," she sighed, "You know he loves the both of us in his way."

"So, tell me, still planning a baby, then? Or is it on hold now?" He took a sip of his coffee, pleased to note that it was still inferior to his own.

"Oh, Rhys's mum must call the house once a week, asking if we've 'gotten a move on yet.' He finds the whole thing rather funny, but it's a bit of pressure, you know? Of course we really can't plan anything until we get more recruits, but really, deep down, I'm hoping by the end of the year." Her wide eyes lit up with the prospect of motherhood.

"Wonderful. Just what the Hub needs, the patter of little feet just waiting to get eaten by Myfanwy," he teased, making a swooping motion with his hands towards her cup.

"And whose kids are we feeding to the pterodactyl, exactly, boys and girls?" Jack was suddenly behind Ianto's chair, engulfing their little table in his shadow.

Sometimes Ianto wondered if that shadow was yet another feature of the infamous wrist strap. "Ours, sir, didn't I tell you? I'm pregnant," he deadpanned, knowing full well Jack's (brief) history of unplanned alien pregnancy.

He shuddered. "I'm not paying child support, what you get from this job better be good enough." He stole Ianto's drink, taking a large gulp and putting it back down. "Stealing your recipe, are they?"

"I'm offended to think you'd even compare them. But now that you mentioned it, they leave out the key ingredient I reserve for you alone, Jack."

"Sex and warm feelings?"

"Poison." He gathered his coat and after Gwen did the same, hooked his arm around her, sharing an amused glance. "Shall we, darling?"

Jack hurried after them. "Hey, wait up! I came all the way out here for lunch, even though nobody even thought to invite me, and this is what I get? You're leaving me again? Guys? Hey! Stop!" He would swear they were walking as fast as they could without running, and definitely ignoring him on purpose. He caught up a few steps from the tourist center, grabbing Ianto's arm, twisting him out of Gwen's grasp and face to face with him. "Ianto! What's wrong with you two?"

He went rigid. "Nothing. Just having a talk over coffee, the two of us, because we're friends. Is that not allowed, sir?"

For a moment, he said nothing, allowing the words and feelings to sit in between them as his hand gripped Ianto's arm. He relaxed, slid the hand up his arm and to his shoulder. "Good point. Can't have the boss eating lunch with the team, bad for office morale." He cupped Ianto's cheek with his hand and stole a quick, chaste kiss. "We should go for dinner, then."

Sometimes, Ianto wondered if Jack did the things he did because he somehow knew exactly what was going on, could read Ianto's mind perfectly. "Ah, okay, if it makes you feel better." Something about the feel of the other man's warm skin on his, even through his suit, made him relax into the loose hold. He allowed Jack to kiss him again, a little longer, but no less chaste. He wondered at how the world seemed to stop moving every time their lips met, and chastised himself for thinking like a teenage girl. His final conclusion was that the wrist strap had something to do with it.

"Boys? Enough public displays for today?" Gwen interrupted before they forgot they were outside in broad daylight with work to do rather than alone in the intimate quiet of a bedroom. The irony of the situation based on the day's conversation was not lost on her either.

"Right. Weevil hunting. Archiving. After you, sir." He knew it wasn't the wrist strap but the pathetic beating of his own heart.

He grabbed Ianto's ass, breaking the spell. "Aww, but I like putting on a show." He led the way regardless, and for the rest of the day acted as if the little display on Cardiff Bay had never occurred.

"Well if it isn't my favorite nightingale, Martha Jones. What do I owe the pleasure of a phone call?" Jack leaned back on his desk, kicking up his feet on his desk, careful that Ianto wasn't around to see and scold.

Martha's voice was heavy, almost sad. "I've quit U.N.I.T., Jack."

He kept up his usual banter. "Aw, no red beret for Ianto then?"

She laughed a little. "Jack, behave. No, I quit because. Well, it's a long story, but I went with the Doctor again, and, oh Jack, he's so upset."

He grew serious. "What do you mean?"

"He feels so alone. He lost Donna and Rose at the same time, you know? And all of us, with our own lives now. I think he came back for me because, well its not like I'm, or, was, running the show, over at U.N.I.T. and I don't think he can bear anyone new at this point. But I got back, and I just couldn't work there anymore. But, I just wanted to let you know, he might show up around there, and, he's not alright." She almost sounded on the verge of tears.

"Are you alright, Martha?" he asked gently.

"No, Jack, I'm not." Her voice cracked, she took a deep breath, but said nothing.

He posed the question, despite repeated rejection, "Come to Torchwood. Change of scenery. Less people. We always need a doctor."

"Look, I've got to go. Tom's here. I'll see you later." She hung up, leaving Jack staring at the ceiling, marveling at how quickly things could fall apart even after you save the world.

"Jack, get your feet off the desk," Ianto said, not unkindly. "Is Martha alright?"

He didn't bother asking how Ianto knew. "No, she isn't. Something about the Doctor, coming to visit. I hope he leaves us out of it." Walking to the door, he took his non-Starbucks and hopefully non-poisoned drink from Ianto and called out to Gwen, "Go home to Rhys, I'll see you in the morning." Plans for dinner were forgotten, but not by Ianto.

As Jack thrust in, kneeling into the mattress, one hand around Ianto's cock, the other grasping for whatever touch it could managed, Ianto tried not to look like he was checking the time. Boredom did not drive his semi-obsessive glances, but fear.

John was on his way, having texted just as Ianto and Jack had groped their way in the front door, pissed at having been blown off the night before. Ianto knew he'd be there too soon, knew he wouldn't listen to his request for him to wait, knew Jack would never be out the door in time. God forbid Jack see John. God forbid even Gwen found out. They couldn't know how he was betraying them every night.

Miraculously Jack left quickly with the promise he'd be back late in the night, well after Ianto was asleep, after he'd blown off some steam in his usual fighting-weevil roof-brooding way. Even more miraculously, John didn't show up for another half hour.

Not so miraculously. John didn't show up because he intercepted Jack on his way out. "What, no domestic bliss for you and Eyecandy?" he mocked, closing the distance between them.

"What are you doing here, John? I told you to stay away from them." John's real reason to be there never even crossed his mind.

"Not them, just him. Got a thing for the young ones, you know what I mean? Like to watch him from outside, and maybe one of these days he'll walk out here, and well, put on a little show for the neighbors."

"Everyone's an exhibitionist today," he sighed, and punched him in the jaw, knocking him to the ground. "Get out of here." Instead of compliance, he found resistance as John pulled him to the ground.

"What if I fuck you on his front lawn?" John breathed into his ear, and against his own better judgment, and possibly against physiology, he felt himself growing hard again at the proximity to his other lover.

"You wouldn't. You won't." he said firmly, attempting to rise, but John's hands were on his hips and his sharp, angled body was rolling on top of him and thrusting erection against erection in such a way that taking off their clothes and fucking among the weeds and insects took almost no effort on Jack's part.

Ianto had a similar experience as he fucked John over the kitchen table, even though he'd had every intention of sending him away once and for all, wishing Jack had remembered to take him out for dinner.


	4. Lost!

A/N: Alright, so, here it is, finally, chapter 3. Sorry for the long delay, I've had an exceptionally trying month and a half but things seem to be getting better, so hopefully there won't be too long a wait until the next chapter. Hope you enjoy.

The Ice is Getting Thinner (4/9)  
Summary: Jack patiently awaits the Doctor, and Ianto is nowhere to be found.  
Disclaimer: Torchwood and all characters belong to BBC and RTD. Song lyrics belong to Coldplay

Chapter 3: Lost

_You might be a big fish  
In a little pond  
Doesn't mean you've won  
'Cause along may come  
A bigger one_

_Oh, and I'm just waiting 'til the shine wears off._

Jack is already halfway to the heart of the Hub when he realizes the haunting sound of the Tardis has come not from the actual machine but from the recesses of his dreams. He sinks into the nearest chair, frustrated, feeling like a fool in sweatpants and a sweaty t-shirt, some sight for the Doctor to see.

Running a hand through his equally sweaty hair, he knows there is no getting back to sleep for him. That he had slept deeply enough to dream in the first place was surprising enough. He suddenly realizes that he had been sleeping so deeply that he has neglected to notice his normally full bed had been conspicuously empty of life aside from his own.

Racing back to the bed, he climbs down the ladder hastily, landing on the mattress, confirming its lack of another body, realizing belatedly that it could've ended badly if he had been wrong. He panics; he was certain they'd fallen into bed together, exhausted, too exhausted to drive to Ianto's flat. He flicks on the light, and a small, folded piece of paper on the night table catches his attention. Feeling dread build in the pit of his stomach, he opens it, reading quickly.

_I've gone for the night, Jack. Should've woken you but couldn't, you looked so peaceful and god knows sleep for you is a rare treasure. I couldn't sleep for a change, had to clear my head. I'm home. I'll see you in the morning. _

_Ianto _

The letter itself seems innocuous enough, but the implication of "I've gone," and the read-between-the-lines quality of "don't follow me," gives Jack pause. He knows that Ianto wouldn't lie to him, but he also knows that the past few months have been a toll on Ianto most of all because he was hides with such skill behind his perfectly presentable suit.

However, the darker, uglier part of Jack, the part that rears its head so much more often anymore, believes that Ianto is having a rendezvous with whomever he is seeing on the side, and it made his dark, ugly self want to call up John as payback.

He remembers when he was the man on the side while Ianto had loved Lisa, a time when he had so firmly convinced himself he would not acquiesce to love again because it just hurt so much. He really hoped this guy (or girl) knew what he was getting into because Ianto was a pro at fooling someone into believing that they were his world. Which made it all the harder, because Jack knew that when Ianto loved, the one he loved _was_ his world, and how the hell was Jack supposed to tell the difference?

***

In the morning, he emerges from his office, hands in his pockets, and is greeted with the sight of not Gwen and Ianto as he'd come to expect, but Gwen and her husband, who looks very much in a state of false bravado as he hovers beside her desk and she whispers, "Hush now, just let me talk to him."

"I don't even want to be here," he whispers back, and Jack can't help but roll his eyes.

"What's this we have here, Gwen?" he asks, as if he is blind and deaf and doesn't realize she's trying to manipulate him.

"Rhys is coming to work for us, Jack, as general support, take some of the work away from Ianto, and there's no harm to it because he knows who we are and what we do and he's already proven himself." As confident as she tries to sound, she can't help but rush through the well-practiced speech. She ducks her head a moment, gathering her stubborn courage back together, and stares him straight in the eyes. "We need more people, Jack."

"Okay," he says, and takes the few steps to where Rhys stands, the mirror picture of shock to his wife. "Welcome to the team." He offered his hand as well as a smile packed with every ounce of his charm, "Try not to get yourself killed."

As he walks away, he is sure he hears Rhys whisper, "Maybe you could talk to him about having a baby now," and Jack has to try very hard not to laugh.

***

He retreats back to his office and quickly sends off an email, asking Ianto to begin updating Rhys's information into the computers and the Archives, though he has a nagging feeling that Ianto has done so already. His phone vibrates, and he groans out loud when he reads the name. John. John, who has already done so much damage, who is probably looking to cause more. "What?" he answers testily.

""M done playing home wrecker with you and Eyecandy. Someone's making me an offer and I'm taking it, so don't expect to be seeing me around here anytime soon." The call disconnects, leaving Jack with one eyebrow raised, confused. That was easier than he expected, easier than it should have been.

***

Ianto is still missing by mid-morning. Upon asking Gwen, she reveals that he is, in fact, inside the Hub, but has secluded himself to the Archives. Not before providing Gwen and Rhys with coffee, of course, managing to provide the latter with exactly what he wanted without even having been told. (Gwen had previously sworn not to ruin the magic by telling Rhys that Ianto had asked her ahead of time about his preferences. Jack didn't know the secret either, and was, as usual, suitably impressed.)

Jack looks at his desk. As he has observed the first five times, the spot reserved for his coffee is just as empty as it had been when Ianto had removed his cup from the previous evening. Possible scenarios ran through his mind. Payback for the ongoing boxers debate, possibly, or maybe his thoughts were so occupied he'd simply forgotten. Jack knew better, though. He had done it on purpose, because Ianto never forgets, not when he's sick, not when he's hurt.

He checks the CCTV and finds him exactly where he expects, in the Archives, standing over a drawer, and Jack briefly wonders if Ianto is taunting him with a very precise view of his perfect ass. Of course he is, he knows. Jack could laugh, but instead he chooses to hunt him out, and maybe, as the little nagging voice that sometimes sounds like Rose and sometimes sounds like Martha but always rings true of his mother's wisdom says, maybe begin to close that great big bleeding wound that had become their _relationship_.

He leans on the wall, casually, and he doesn't say anything, because he knows Ianto knows he is there, and he knows Ianto knows he knows, and while he tries to sort that out he doesn't notice Ianto calling for his attention until the second go.

"…are you even listening? Jack?" He looks annoyed, and Jack wonders briefly if that old warning, "don't make that face or you'll get stuck with it," is true at all because that's the only look Ianto's had on his face for what feels like months and frankly Jack is tired of it.

"Yes, Ianto?" he says calmly.

"I said: I'm surprised you've functioned this long without your coffee." He closes the drawer he's been working in and leans against it. Jack remembers the oh-so taunting view of the ass that's now pressing into a cabinet. What a waste, he thinks, but rears his mind in because he knows that right now is not the time to screw around, no pun intended.

"Oh, well, that's why I'm here. The masses are clamoring for your special blend," he says, and realizes, with some annoyance, that he sounds as nervous as he feels.

"The masses have been rewarded," he says with a smirk on his face, "You're the only one suffering caffeine withdrawal at the moment."

There's an awkward pause for a few moments, each daring the other to break the silence first, until Jack caves. "Fine, what did I do?"

Ianto sighs, making a fist, letting it go. "Did you ever think it may not be something you did, specifically?" he continues, in such a low voice Jack unconsciously leans in to hear, " That maybe for once, I'm completely unfazed by your distance, unperturbed by your affairs on the side, and completely fucking over your pathetic pining for the Doctor?" Suddenly, his voice raises, and he grabs Jack's braces, maybe for a hold on the world, maybe out of anger, "Did the possibility that I may have my own problems that have nothing to do with you? That I left in the middle of the night not because I don't know what to do about us, even though I don't, but because I'm trying to sort through my own mind? And you don't even ask. You don't even notice. Because you're too busy trying to figure out what you did wrong,"

"And I'm just making it worse," he finishes softly, gently removing Ianto's clenched fists from his braces and lowering them to his sides, where he keeps hold of them loosely. "I'm not pining for the Doctor," he says, and even he knows it sounds weak.

Ianto shakes his head, rolls his eyes, uses every facial muscle to convey how utterly unconvinced he is by the statement. "He isn't coming Jack, you'll just have to face facts. Whatever phone call you had with Martha was your unintentional red herring. You chose to stay here, for a second time, and you don't get to take it back a third."

His eyes widen in shock, and he scrambles to defend himself, letting go of his hands. "No, Ianto, I don't want to leave, never, that isn't what I want, I want," he begins, and he has no idea.

"You want him to come visit, to pop in for tea once a week and keep up with the kids, and you can't seem to get your head around the fact that he isn't keen on playing house with anyone, you especially." He spits out the last words, so utterly sick of the discussion. "I know you've been dreaming about it more than the one time I found you in the kitchen; expecting him to show up in the middle of the night, but it isn't going to happen."

"How can you be so sure?" he demands, ego wounded.

"I know. Isn't it enough that I know?"

"Have you developed psychic power as well as a diva complex being down here so long?" he says flippantly, and immediately regrets it.

Hurt, Ianto looks away. "Fine Jack, I get it, I'm not allowed to be human anymore. Give me a little more time; I'll have no emotions just like you."

"No, I didn't mean that." He takes his hand again, ignoring the offense because he knows he deserves it. "How do you know?"

"Because he picked me, instead of you," he says with more daring than he should. Jack is so shocked he doesn't even drop the hand uselessly once more, just stares into his eyes, waiting for some sort of explanation.


End file.
